The Eric Dragonshard Journals: How I became a Mutant
by Liliana Dragonshard
Summary: It was a regular day, turning to night, when my life got turned upside down! Aliens made me a mutant, and I'm gonna fight till they've gotten their butts kicked off my planet! With my sister, and our new friends, the ninja turtles, the skies the limit, and with new wings, I'm gonna fight with all my shadinja strength! I may be 8, but don't you dare under-estimate me! Or else!
1. The Mutation

**Author's Note**

**I ****Don't own TMNT, only the story line and added OCs**

**This a one-shot(whatever that is) about how Eric Dragonshard became a mutant, and some other stuff that happened to him and Lili when they came to New York City; from his point of view. I hope you like it. P.S. I really do have a brother, and got his permission to, A) add him to 'The Liliana Dragonshard Journals', and B) make this story at all. Enough said. Enjoy!**

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**hi**=author stuff, '_hi_'=thoughts, hi=more meaning

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**Chapter One: **The Mutation

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Fate is funny sometimes. Nothing out of the ordinary happened that day before my life changed forever. But I'm getting ahead of myself. My name is Eric Dragonshard, and this is my tale.

It had been a regular Saturday for us. We hung around the house, played some video games, watched a movie. When we headed out that night with our parent's, it was really dark. We were on our way to a new restaurant in Chinatown, when a strange man halted us.

"Halt," he started. "You are the shard which is the shard of dragon. You will come with me to a place where you will not leave that place." I had two seconds to think '_What the heck?!_', before a white van pulled up next to us. Out of the back of the van, more men came; but they all looked exactly the same as the first guy! About 10 clone guys, masked men, or SOMETHING! When they started attacking, we fought back, with all our strength. I'd even like to say that my big Sis fought with all the strength of the Night Fury, our patron animal. We fought with our nunchuks, our parents, with their fists. But it wasn't enough! Our parents were thrown into the van, with Lili and I fighting hard to free them. That's when I saw one of the clone guys take a container with a strange, green, glowing substance from the van. He walked towards us, but then the van exploded!

My sister and I got hurled backward, luckily with minor scrapes and possibly a few bruises. The clone guys had scattered, the strange canister was nowhere to be seen. I clutched my peregrine falcon wing feather and cat fur necklace for comfort. When I rolled onto my stomach, I discovered where the container was. Right under me, the glass shattered to pieces, mixed with the strange, green, glowing ooze, my legs, belly, and hands in the middle of it. I began to feel extreme pain, starting in in my legs, belly, and hands, quickly spreading through my entire body. When it had eased off, I could feel my sister pull me up, and with her help, I made it to the rooftops. Once up there, I caught her looking at me funny.

"What is it?" I asked. Lili held up her pocket-mirror. I gasped. The ooze had made me...a mutant.

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**Please review! Your reviews determine whether or not this is continued. Liliana and Eric, signing out!**


	2. The Mutation, Part 2

**Authors Note**

**I Don't Own TMNT, Only the Story lines and O.C.'s**

**Hey, guys! I am back! I hope you like! I don't own the Duat! Read the book, 'The Red Pyramid', to learn more. 'When we last left off, Eric had just realized he's a mutant... What will he and Liliana do now...?'**

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_'hi'_=thoughts, **hi**=author stuff, hi=more meaning, _~hi~=_mind-speech

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**Chapter 2**: The Mutation, Part 2

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I stared at the mirror, my mind not fully comprehending what had happened. The face in the mirror was unfamiliar, but it was mine. I was a mutant cat, with soft, dark brown fur all over my body, laced with an even darker brown, in wild stripes. My belly fur was a lighter brown than the others, free of stripes. My eye's were now feline, green with those odd cat slits for pupils, and able to see through night like it was day. The fur over and surrounding my eye's, arranged like a ninja mask, was black. I had sensitive black whiskers on me, where you'd expect it on a cat. The cat ears on top of my head were black, and very soft, able do hear tons and tons. My nose, able to smell tons and tons. The last feature on my face, or rather, my mouth, was that it looked like a cats mouth, sharp teeth, rough tongue, cat jowls, but to size with my human size. I slowly examined my new humanoid paws, extended the fingers-if you could call them fingers-, and sharp claws slid out. The same thing with my back paws; which were more like paws than feet. I examined my new tail, turning a few circles trying to grab it. When I did, I could see that it was about three and a half feet long, and very fluffy. In fact, all the fur on me was really long and fluffy, which I realized that I didn't mind. It kept me warm enough, at least. At least my height hadn't changed.

"You okay man?" my sister, Liliana, asked.

"I, I think so." I replied, " I mean this is really weird and all, but I think That I might get used to it...maybe." She grinned at me, then her expression changed to one of surprise and wonder.

"What is it?" I asked, feeling nervous. She pointed to my back. I looked, and then yelped! Some how, without me knowing or even feeling it, I had grown...wings. I was shocked, of course, but soon curiosity pushed it aside, and I carefully examined them. They were jet black, the feathers stiff and soft to the touch. I moved my shoulders, which only made my wings to jerk a little. I kept trying, and eventually got the hang of it, flapping, and even, when flapping really hard and with a little jump, I would hover above the ground a few seconds and a few inches off the ground, before I lost strength. I was beginning to like this. Butt then, it hit me. Our parents... were dead. I would never get to share this with them. My eye's began to tear up, and I quickly walked over and hugged Lili. She hugged me back tears beginning to drip down her cheeks, whispering

"It's okay, it's okay. We'll find a way through this. I promise to do my best to protect you."

"And I promise to my best to protect you, too." I replied. Using her magic, my sister pulled our hooded cloaks from the Duat. The Duat is this magic place or stuff, which is anywhere and everywhere. I don't quite get it. Anyway, my sis can use her magic to put stuff in the Duat, like an infinitely big storage device, and then pull it back out when it's needed. We put on our cloaks and pulled up the hoods. My cloak was dark blue, with a some what lighter blue trim on the edge. My sister's was the same, but with purple. She made them for us, for our shadinja patrols.

Just then, Lili stiffened.

"What it is?" I asked, suddenly feeling afraid. As a mutant, I couldn't let other people see me. They would shriek, run away, or capture me and experiment on me in some crazy lab. I swiveled my ears to and fro, but I couldn't hear anything, other than the New York City night life. Suddenly, my sister pulled me under a nearby water-tower, and pulled her cloak over me, and then said the one magic word I'd memorized so far.

"L'mun." Lili whispered. Instantly, we were swathed in a bubbly patch of shadows, as if the shadows were torn up black scraps of fabric, yanked and sown roughly together, but without a stitch showing. We remained silent, watching, waiting, listening. If I couldn't hear it with my new cat ears, that means Lili didn't hear anything either; she sensed had it with her magic. Then, I heard it, and my ears pricked, trying to figure out where it came from. Lili looked at me, signaling to point in the direction the sound came from. I angled my ears toward the sound, and from the looks of it, so could Lili; before I mutated, she had had the better ears. That's when we saw the 4 shapes leap to our rooftop; from the roof next door.

_'Whoa!' _I thought, before getting a good look at them. Then, I had to bite my tongue(which REALLY hurt with cat teeth) to keep from yelping. There were 4 mutant ninja turtles, right in front of us. My sister and I had only seen them once before, on last weeks shadinja patrol. I guess my shock came from the added shock of being a mutant now, I suppose.

They looked different, and carried different weapons. The first guy had a blue mask, a sense of authority, and twin swords on his back,and was named 'Leo'. The second one had a red mask, was a little bigger than the others, had a lightning shaped scar on his stomach shell, had what appeared to be sais on his belt, and seemed short tempered. His name was 'Raph'. The third guy was a little taller and skinnier than the others, had a purple mask, a bo staff on his back, a gap between his upper front teeth, and seemed really intelligent, and his name was 'Donnie'. The last guy was a little smaller than the others, about eye level with Lili. He had an orange mask, freckles on his cheeks, and twin nunchucks on his belt, and seemed like a prankster or jokester, and his name was 'Mikey'. We knew their names and such because we heard them talking a bit when we first saw them.

They walked to the edge of the roof, where we had climbed up, and peered down at the blown up van. Donnie spoke up first.

"Looks like we missed it this time, guys."

"No fair! I was ready to bash some bots!" Exclaimed Raph.

"Settle down, Raph. There's always next time." soothed Leo.

"Guys, we have a problem." interjected Donnie.

"What it is?" asked Leo.

"There's a broken canister of mutagen down there. If we don't do something, some poor innocent guy is gonna became a mutant." replied Donnie.

"Let's check it out, guys. But cautiously." stated Leo.

_'He's _definitely_ the leader.' I thought. _They made their way down the fire escape Lili and I had used, and I cautiously moved out of the shadow bubble and walked to the edge of the building, and peered down at them. Donnie had scooped up the spilled,-what was it, mutagen?-ooze off the ground, and into what was left of the broken container. As I peered down, I could hear their conversation wafting up from below.

"It's half empty, but better than nothing." said Donnie.

"What do you think the Kraang were up to this time?" asked Leo.

"Whatever they were up to, it's not good!" exclaimed Raph.

"Do you think anyone got mutated?" asked Mikey, nervously glancing about.

"It's, uh, hard to say, Mikey." reassured Donnie. In the act of leaning closer, I bumped a small pebble that was there, and it fall on Mikey's head. I had one second to think,

_'This is _not_ good.' _ before Mikey glanced up and saw me. We both froze, our eye's locked, neither of us daring to move. The other turtles had not realized their brother's situation yet, and were still discussing what the Kraang could be up to, when Raph said teasingly,

"Do you see the mutant, Mikey?" Mikey remained frozen, and then Raph glanced up as well. He froze for a few secounds, and our eye's met for that time. I could read his thoughts for a moment-all part of being a shadinja in training-and he was thinking,

_'What the...!? Mikey was _right _about something!?' _ before breaking his gaze away and alerting the others,

"Guys, Mikey's spotted something on the roof."

"Really?" asked Donnie in disbelief, before glancing my way and gasping. Leo did looked up as well, and I could feel them watching me. It was unnerving, being stared down like mouse: it made me uneasy. Then, it hit me. They probably don't know I'm a mutant yet. I quickly signaled Liliana to run, that I could take care of myself, that I had the magic necklace she had given me, so it would be easy to find each other again. I risked a glance back at her. Her I eye's held a look of understanding and worry. I quickly did the mind-speech connection thing she had taught me, channeling the magic with her through our necklaces.

_~It's okay, we'll find each other again.~_ I thought.

_~It's okay, I understand. Separate now, meet up in a day or two?~_ she asked.

_~We just have to remember, 'No one get's left behind...'~_ I replied.

_~'Or forgotten'. Where do you want to meet?~ _she asked.

_~No meeting places. We'll fix a place when the coast is clear on both ends. And call me Nightwing if you see me, it's harder to trace. Agreed?~ _I stated.

_~All right, just be careful. Love you.~ _she thought.

_~Love you too. Now, hunker down, and stay quiet. I'll lead them off.~ _I replied.

_~Okay, good luck.~_ she thought. After that, we broke the connection, and I stared back down at the turtles. Raph was watching me while Leo gave orders. I stood still as they began to climb back up to the roof, planned my route, risked one more glance in the direction Lili had left in, and began to run the other way. The turtles ran after me, and the chase was on.

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**Please review! I hope you like it! Please keep in mind that I'm counting on reviews to see what should change in the story. 'Bye! Eric and Lili, signing out!**


	3. The Chase

**Author's Note **

**I Don't Own TMNT!**** But it would be really awesome if I did. I only own the current story line, plus Eric and Liliana Dragonshard.**

**Hi! Lili and Eric are back, baby! Now I just want to say this, I am writing this story, not Eric, but I did get his permission to write this story. **

**(WARNING! This Story May Or May Not Be True. Decide For Yourself, For The Answer Lies In The Shadows... Of New York City...) On with the show! _'When we last left off, Lili and Eric had parted ways, and Eric was at risk of fighting the turtles, who were chasing him in the last chapter... what will he do now?_**

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**Chapter 3: **The Chase

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I began to run, as quick as I could. I picked a route that would get me away from my sister as fast as possible, to lead off the turtles. I wasn't sure if they knew I was a mutant, because I had had my hooded cloak on, the hood pulled up over my head, when I had been spotted. I wasn't sure what they would do to me if the caught up to me. When me and my sister had first seen the turtles, they had been fighting a giant mutant dog. Who knows what they would do to me? As I ran, I decided to try playing fox and hounds.

When I felt that there was enough distance between me and my sister, and enough space between me and the turtles, I began a series of loops, going left, then making a loop to the right, then left again. Then I went straight, and after a few blocks, I circled back again. I knew they would figure out my pattern soon enough, so I kept a careful watch on them, changing the area for my series of loops. Running and just _being_ a mutant cat was amazing. It felt like I could hear anything, smell anything, and see into the deepest shadows. I could run faster, for longer, and jump farther than ever. Plus my tail gave me excellent balance. I kept my wings carefully folded on my back, for not only did I not know how to use them yet, I wouldn't know how to heal them if they got caught on something.

As I made the loops again, I searched for places to hide, for if I could find a place, the turtles might run right past me, and I could slip away, without a trace. I soon found a spot, and careful then to only be in the shadows, I hid myself. I could here them stop nearby, discussing where I could have gone, and whether they should keep looking.

"Where do you think he could have gone?" asked Donnie.

"Not sure, did anyone get a good look at him? If we know who or what he his, we'll be able to guess where he went." said Leo.

_'They don't know I'm a mutant yet.' _I realized. _'That is definitely to my advantage.'_

"When I saw him, I could only make out the eyes. His eyes were green, and the pupils were like horizontal black slits." said Mikey.

"That's what the eyes looked like." confirmed Raph.

"That sounds like a cat. Cat's have eyes like that." commented Donnie.

"So do you think that we're dealing with a mutant cat?" asked Leo.

"It's a possibility." replied Donnie.

_'Dang it! They have a clue about me now! Calm down Eric, calm down. Listen.' _I thought.

"What do you think he wants?" asked Mikey nervously.

"We don't know, Mikey." said Leo.

"Huh? What's that?" muttered Raph. "Guys, I think I spotted something over there." Raph said. I waited in dread for them to get me, but it never happened. I peeked out cautiously. The disadvantage of my hiding spot was that I couldn't see them without being seen. I watched as they disappeared from sight. I listened, and sniffed the air, but I couldn't detect anything. My nose, unfortunately, was currently useless, for I hadn't learned yet in this short time how to properly assign new smells to certain things, making it nearly impossible to recognize such things. There was no trace of the turtles. I checked that my belt was secure, and that everything on it was secure as well, before stepping out into the open. I looked around, chose my route, and was off.

I ran at a consistent pace, and my destination was Murakami's noodle shop. Pizza gyoza and a bowl of rice sounded real good right now. I secured my hood, and pulled my cloak tighter, and before climbing down the buildings fire escape, and entered the noodle shop. It was late, so know one else was in there.

"Hello, Murakami? Are you here?" I called out. Murakami came from the back and answered warmly,

"Aw, Eric-san! You have come again! What would you like?" he asked.

"Pizza gyoza, and a bowl of rice. You know how I like it. And call me Nightwing, please." I answered.

"As you wish, Nightwing-san." Murakami answered. As he whirled around the kitchen, fixing the gyoza and rice, I began to get a prickling in my fur. I felt like I was being watched. I thanked Murakami as he delivered my food, and began to eat. I wrapped the 4 remaining pizza gyoza and secured it to my belt. When I tried to pay him, he said I could have it on the house. I thanked him, and left the shop. I climbed to the nearest rooftop, and the prickling got stronger. I listened carefully, and heard light footfalls behind me. I pretended to shrug it off, and kept walking. When it was a few feet away and gaining fast, I slowed down a bit. When who-ever-it-was was 2 feet away, I back flipped behind him. Then I realized who had been following me. Somehow, the turtles had tracked me all the way to the noodle shop. They hadn't entered most likely because they don't want to be seen by humans. As the turtle spun around, I could easily see that it was Raph. He scowled at me. I backed away slowly, keeping my eyes on him, and my ears pricked. Then, I bumped into something. I spun around and backed away. I had bumped into Leo. Halting, I glanced around. Donnie and Mikey were there as well, surrounding me. The hounds had outsmarted the fox. I was trying to think of a way out of this, when Leo spoke.

"It's okay, we don't want a fight, we just want to know who you are." I narrowed my eyes. I wasn't about tell them anything about me just yet. I had to be careful, though; I didn't want yo fight these guys. They're the good guys.

"What's it to you?" I growled menacingly.

"Calm down, we don't want a fight. We only want to know who you are, and why you were watching us by the wrecked van." explained Donnie.

"I just happened to be there, so what." I answered, reluctant to hand out even my new name.

"Just tell us and no one gets hurt." threatened Raph. Leo glared at him.

"Wow, you convinced me. It really does sound like you mean no harm." I said sarcastically.

"Dude, just tell us. We don't want a fight. Well, maybe Raph does, but the rest of us don't." said Mikey.

"Call me Nightwing, and I saw what happened with the van, and I'm not telling. 'Bye." I said gruffly. I brushed past Raph, and heard him growl,

"All right that's it!" before coming at me, sais in hand. I dodged out of the way and drew my nunchaku. Oh, it was_ so_ on. He wanted a fight, so he's gonna get a fight.

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**Hope you like! Please review! Also, I want your opinion on who wins the fight, Eric or Raph, and what happens afterwards depending on who wins. 'Bye! Eric and Lili, signing out!**


	4. The Showdown

**Authors Note**

**I Don't own TMNT, only Eric and myself, Liliana, and the current story line.**

**Eric: I am back, people! Did ya miss me?**

**Me: How did you get in here?**

**Eric: We're shadinja, hello. I thought that would be pretty obvious. And besides, you asked me to come to give you the next chapter.**

**Me: Oh, right. Hey! Be quiet! I'm the author here, remember?!**

**Eric: Your only transcribing my tale, and you know it!(Grabs me and hoists into the air) Admit it!**

**Me: Fine, fine, I submit! Now put me down so I can write it.(puts me down) Thank you. Eric?**

**Eric: Huh? Oh yeah, right. Don't forget to review! And I will not be happy if you don't. I almost LIVE on your reviews. On with the show! _'When we last left off, I was about to fight Raph... What will I do now?'_**

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**Chapter 4**: The Showdown

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Raph launched himself at me, sais in hand. I dodged aside. He wants a fight, then he's gonna get a fight. I drew my nunchaku from my belt. No point in confirming for them that I'm a mutant cat...yet. I looked Raph up and down. Having knowledge of your opponent can mean the difference between victory and defeat. He was way bigger than me and Lili, so he had more strength, but it probably makes him a little slower than me. He's a hothead, so if I get him mad at some point, or madder, he might lose control. If I could get on his back, er, shell, I could get in a good blow or 2 before getting thrown off. But no claws or teeth, as they'll be a last resort.

When he came at me again, I was ready. I dodged again, and got him in the stomach with my nunchaku. I turned toward him and said,

"Is that the best you've got? I've seen better on a three legged sheep." I taunted. He turned towards me again, and I could see that his eyes had gone pure white. I wondered if I could do that if I had a mask. I dodged again as he came at me, and knocked his legs out from under him.

"This is getting boring. If I had known that it would be this easy, I wouldn't have even bothered. It must be hard for the big tough turtle, getting beaten up by someone half his size. Oh well. You win some, you lose some." I taunted again.

"I'm gonna pound you to a pulp, right after I slap the blue off your cape!" He snarled.

"You have a lotta courage going against me, you yellow-bellied punk!" I returned. With a roar, he charged again. I dodged again, but this time I leaped onto his shell! He spun and jumped around, but I stuck fast.

"Guys! Get this, this, _THING_ off of me!" he shouted. I could see Donnie sigh and start approaching, staff raised. But I backflipped off right before he swung, so he ended up knocking Raph to the ground! I was a little shocked. I didn't want to fight or hurt the turtles, but I didn't want to tell anyone else what had happened yet either. I stood, frozen, staring at Raph, who was being pulled to his feet by Donnie. I swiveled my ears backwards. There was a whistling sound in the air; I turned and swung my nunchaku up, and it caught the end of a nunckuk chain. I stared at Mikey, then I unwrapped my nunchaku, just before he tugged at the chain, but I resisted. I heard footsteps behind me. I turned to see Raph and Leo, fast approaching, ready to do what he had said. There was a chance that I could beat him, or a different turtle, one-on-one, but as a group? I would be done for. As I felt another tug on the chain, I dodged to the side, causing Raph to trip on the chain, I quickly looped it around his feet, causing him to fall down again. I threw the pizza gyoza I had in Leo's face, then tripped him. I leaped over them and grabbed the chain again. I gave a hard tug on it, and but when Mikey tugged back, the chain was yanked from my grasp! With nothing to stop or slow his momentum, he lurched back, teetering on the edge of the roof! I lunged toward him, only to have him hit my arm with his other nunchuk. I yelped in pain, and watched as he began to fall backward off the edge, I lunged towards him again, in a desperate attempt to save him, as his brothers simultaneously shouted,

"MIKEY!", I was ably to grab his arm, and halt his descent, only to have his weight begin to drag me down, until I toppled off with him! Thinking fast, I grabbed the dagger from my belt, and stabbed it into the side of the building with all my strength, while clinging tightly to his arm. It slowed our descent, but I felt excruciating pain in my arm, and screamed, before it let go without my permission. We were about 10 feet off the ground at that point, but I couldn't think straight enough to try and land properly. I waited to hit the ground, only to feel arms around me, and a soft thud that announced that we'd landed. I opened my eyes to see that Mikey had caught me. He put me on my feet and Mikey said,

"Dude, thanks! I don't know what your deal is, but thanks." I only nodded, the pain making it hard to focus on anything else.

"You okay?" He asked, looking concerned.

"I don't...know." I admitted. "My arm...hurts." I managed at last.

"You should come home with us! Donnie will fix you up, and you'll be A-O-Kay in no time!" He said. I nodded and started to say,

"Thanks, dude. I-" before being cut off as Raph tackled me, sending pain shooting up and down my arm, causing me to shriek.

"You are gonna pay for shoving my bro off a building!" he shouted, as he began to punch me. I struggled and at last managed to nip him on the arm! He yelped and backed away, blood beginning to drip from his arm.

"You. Are. Gonna. Pay!" He yelled, coming at me again. I dodged aside, before leaping behind Mikey.

"Get out of the way, Mikey. I need to teach this piece of scum a lesson!" yelled Raph. I could hear Donnie and Leo running our way, and if they had the same thoughts as Raph, then I was toast. I began to feel dizzy, as Mikey started explaining what happened to his brothers.

"He was trying to pull me back up, but my weight dragged him down. He took a dagger off his belt and slammed it into the wall, which slowed us down, but he cried out and let go, so I caught him so he wouldn't get hurt more." Leo turned to me and asked,

"Did you really save Mikey?" I was having trouble at that point, unable to make the connection between the question and the answer. I just kinda looked at him blankly. Mikey looked at me worriedly, before Raph walked up to me and poked me in the chest, before saying,

"Answer the question!" he ordered.

"Wha...?" was all I could say. He pushed me and repeated himself, before Donnie stopped him, saying,

"Knock it off, Raph! I think he's hurt." he walked over and gingerly touched my injured arm, causing pain to go spiking up and down it. I screamed, and as Donnie leaped back and the turtles jumped at the sound, the world spun, and I collapsed, the world fading into blackness, and the last thing I heard was Mikey.

"Nightwing!" he shouted, before everything went black.

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** Dun, dun, dun! What will happen to Eric? What will the turtles do with him? Please review! PM if you have any suggestions on what happens next. Eric and Liliana, signing out! **


	5. The Awakening

**Authors Note**

**I Don't Own**** TMNT, I only own Eric and Myself, plus the story line.**

**Me: I'm back again, people! Sorry it's taken awhile to get back.**

**Eric: I'll say. It was _so_ boring!**

**Me: Pipe down! I'm getting to it.**

**Eric: Not fast enough.**

**Me: What was that?!**

**Eric: Uh oh... Don't forget to review! Start the chapter!**

**Me: When I get my hands on yo-(gets a pillow thrown in the face)**

**Eric: Help!(flies out window)**

**Me: Grrr... anyway,_'When we last left off, Eric had fallen unconscious and injured by the turtles...What will he do now?' _**

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**Chapter 5**: The Awakening

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When I woke up, my first thought was,

_'Man, that must have been some sparring session. I need to tell Sis to take it down a notch next time. And man, that was a wacky dream, though. Becoming a mutant, as if.'_ I tried to push myself up, only to cry out as pain shot through my left arm. I looked at it to see that it was bandaged up. Then I heard voices drifting in;

"Do you think he's up yet?" someone asked. He sounded like a surfer dude.

"I was about to check on him, actually." a 2nd voice replied.

"I still think that bringing him here was a bad idea." a 3rd voice huffed.

"Come on, Raph. You heard Mikey. Nightwing was trying to _save_ him, not push him off." a 4th voice added.

_'Nightwing? Mikey? Raph? That sounds kinda familiar.' _I thought.

"I'm gonna check on him." the 2nd voice said .

"Me too." the 1st person answered. I heard a door open,and before anyone came in, though, I laid my head down and pretended to sleep. When I felt them hovering over me, I sat bolt upright while shouting,

"BOO!"

"Aaaahhhhh!" was the startled answer. I could hear pounding footsteps, and two other guys ran in. But they were all turtles! My look of triumph had turned to one of confusion, my gaze flicking between the turtles, for my plan of scaring Lili had turned out unexpected. As I looked around, I remembered everything in a flash. Becoming a mutant, fighting the turtles, saving Mikey, it all came back to me.

I looked around swiftly, trying to figure out where I was. It looked like I was in a lab, like in those movies where the mad scientist loses funding, and gets his own stuff. If they made movies like that, at least.

"It's okay, we're not gonna hurt you." soothed Donnie.

"I know, and I'm not gonna hurt you, either." I replied.

"Did you know we were coming in?" asked Mikey.

"Well, yes and no." I answered.

"He sounds like Splinter." muttered Raph.

"Who's Splinter?" I asked, looking at Raph.

"You...you could hear me?" he asked in surprise. I shrugged.

"I knew you were coming in, but I thought it was someone else." I continued.

"Who?" asked Leo.

"A friend of mine." I replied, averting my eyes, fur burning. I didn't like lying, but in my line of work, I had been trained to ly smoothly, so I could get out of scrapes. This wasn't a scrape, but I didn't want them to know about my sister. Yet.

"Why were you following me, anyway?" I asked.

"We caught you watching us. We have enough people out to get us. We thought that you might be one of them in disguise, or someone new." answered Mikey.

"I see. Why'd ya' bring me to your 'top secret lair' then?" I asked.

"You were injured. We couldn't just leave you there." answered Leo.

"Okay. What happened to my arm?" I asked.

"You dislocated it. I fixed it up, though." Donnie replied.

"How long have you been a mutant?" asked Mikey. I jumped a little at the question, not sure how to answer. Raph elbowed him.

"Way to go, Mikey. What if he doesn't even know?" hissed Raph under his breath.

"Don't be mean to him, Raph. I'd say it's a good question to ask someone." I said. They all looked at me.

"What did you say, Raph?" questioned Leo.

"Oh, uh, nothing. Just mentioning that, um..." Raph stuttered.

"He was being hard on Mikey, believing, for some reason, that I didn't know that I was a mutant." I replied.

"I still don't get how you could hear me." said Raph. I sighed and pulled down my hood, revealing my ears, which I swiveled a bit. They just...stared at me. It was getting too weird. Did they not know that I was a mutant cat?

"Hey, stop staring me down, I'm not a mouse." I said matter-of-factly, crossing my arms best as I could over my chest.

"A...mouse...?"said Leo finally. I looked at him in confusion, then face palmed. Why had I said that?! I may be a mutant cat, but I don't want to hunt rodents! I sighed.

"Well, yeah...a mouse. I dunno." I shrugged.

"Were you a cat before you were mutated?" asked Donnie. I shrugged again. I wasn't sure whether or not I should tell them, but I didn't want to ly, either. Finally, I gave in to my self-negotiation.

"I was human, before I was mutated. Didn't exactly make me taller, though." I said the last bit with humor, in a attempt to lighten the mood. Just then, my belly rumbled. Loudly. How long was it since I had something to eat? I'd eaten that night, but...how long have I been asleep?

"Your probably hungry, aren'ts ya'?" asked Mikey.

"What was your first clue?" I grumbled good naturedly, crossing my arms swiftly over my chest. Which was a mistake. I yelped and held my left arm out awkwardly. Donnie immediately went into 'doctor mode' and began checking out my arm.

"Your arm is still healing. When you dislocated it, and it tore some muscles. You'll be fine in a few days." Donnie explained.

"For now, I can get you a sling so you don't have to stick it out all the time." he continued. After getting the sling on and putting on my cloak again, Mikey instantly grabbed me and dragged me out of the lab. I glanced around and noticed that it looked like a subway, um, subway...station, I guess? It had a 'pit', which was a sunk down part of the floor that was a square shape around a tv, and it looked like a couch.

It also had turnstiles, and a door that looked like it would lead to a dojo or something of that nature. There was also a hallway that had 4 doors; thier rooms, I guess. Mikey led past all this and to a curtained doorway. He led me behind it to a kitchen, of sorts. It had an island table in the middle, a fridge, a stove/oven, and lots of cabinets and drawers.

"So, this is a pretty big space you've got. I take it you don't get a lot of guests, though, do you?" I asked.

"As a matter of fact, we don't, actually." I spun around to see Raph glaring at me. That's when I noticed the small bandage on his right arm. Right where I had bit him! Of coarse! Well, at least that explains why he doesn't seem to like me. Sorta. Raph brushed past me and grabbed a lettuce leaf from the fridge. He sat at the table and took-wait is that a turtle?! Okay, so Raph has his own, non mutated, pet turtle. Anyway, he took the turtle from his shoulder and began feeding him the leaf.

"Okay, pizza will be heated all up in a moment." Mikey said. I nodded.

"Mikey, how long was I asleep?" I asked. I pulled up my hood to block some of the light in the room. Cat eyes are more sensitive, I guess.

"A week." smirked Raph. I rolled my eyes at him and licked my lips.

"You were asleep for about a day or 2." Mikey answered.

"Really?" I asked.

"Really. Now stop talking. Spike, chew your leaf if you want the mutant cat to stop talking." said Raph. Spike ignored the leaf and walked over to Eric. Eric petted him carefully with the back of his hand. He didn't want his claws coming out by mistake and hurting the little guy.

"Spike is pretty cool. Your a tough little guy, aren'ts ya'?" I said.

"Really, Spike? He's the enemy and-" Raph stopped mid sentence and face palmed. I didn't really like the comment, but decided to ignore it. I rolled my eyes and grabbed the leaf.

"Spike, chew this leaf if you think I have a chance to beat Raph hand to hand." I asked the little guy. He chewed on his leaf.

"Seriously Spike?! He's a pipsqueak!" Raph exclaimed, then he face palmed again. Mikey placed the plate of pizza in front of me.

"Lunch is served!" he exclaimed, before chomping on his own plate of food. Before digging in, I remarked to Raph,

"Size isn't everything. I was beating all of you yesterday. With weapons. You can't deny that. Spike, chew on your leaf if you think I'm right." Spike chewed on his leaf, and I chewed on the pizza. I smirked at Raph a little, as he looked pretty steamed. He scooped up Spike and his leaf and stormed out of the kitchen.

I felt my nose twitch. A smell, familiar to the cat side of me, like the cat's instincts were there with mine as well, I suppose, were telling me something big and food related was coming this way. I was pretty horrified at that. I didn't want to hunt for my food. I'm not a cat. I'm a human. _But are you really a human anymore?_ said a small voice in my mind. I jerked my head towards the curtain and was surprised and shocked to see a giant, humanoid rat, wearing a reddish brown robe, and carrying a carved emerald staff. I went rigid, staring at it, suppressing the urge to pounce and fight.

"There is no need to be alarmed. I do not bite." he said. It, he, had a Japanese accent. I remained rigid, and shut my eyes, trying to block out the scent that shouted both food and potential danger to me. I lowered my head slowly, and tried to focus. _You control them. They do not control you! _

I finally looked up at him and smirked a tiny bit. I was trying to act in control of the situation, even if wasn't. Panicking would do no good here.

"I don't bite, either." I replied. He seemed taken aback, and even stepped back a pace. His expression was one of alarm, even though it was slight. I wasn't quite sure how to respond, so I introduced myself.

"They call me Nightwing. What's your name?" I asked. He regained his composure and replied,

"My name is Splinter. It is nice to meet finally meet you, Nightwing." the way he said it was friendly enough, and the tone as well, but something, something was off. Maybe it was the cat instincts, or maybe my magical sense, but he didn't like my presence here.

I decided that as soon as I got all healed up, I would leave. So I wouldn't cause them any trouble.

"You okay, Master Splinter?" asked Mikey.

"I am fine, Michelangelo. I am just surprised by who the guest is. That is all. Have a good lunch." Splinter replied. He turned and walked off. I sighed in relief. I wasn't sure how much longer I could have kept it under control. I got up and put my plate by the sink, then walked into the other room.

I saw Leo watching some out-in-space show, while Raph was punching a dummy. I mean like a punching bag shaped like a ninja thing. With weapons in it. Donnie must have been in his lab, as he wasn't anywhere out here. I sat down next to Leo in the pit and asked,

"What show is this?"

"'Space Heroes', which is only the greatest hero show ever!" he exclaimed.

"Try, the lamest show ever." muttered Raph. I turned to him and replied,

"I won't know if I like it if I don't watch it at least once, Raph." he turned sharply at my comment.

"How the heck did you hear me?!" he demanded. I stood up and leaped out of the pit; in one leap. It surprised me, to say the least. I paused and looked back at where I had been standing. I had leaped pretty high up. I've never leaped that high before.

"I don't know, I just...did." I answered.

"Right." he responded sarcastically. My fur prickled and my ears flattened.

"I don't know what your problem is, but I haven't done anything to be ashamed of!" I exclaimed.

"You were spying on us! You pushed my little brother off a building! And you claim to not have anything to be ashamed of?! We should never have brought you! Your not wanted!" he shouted. I was blown away. Was I really not wanted here? Is that why Splinter had acted that way? My ears were pinned to my skull, my fur fluffed out, wings beginning to open, my eyes tearing up.

"If that's the way you all feel, then fine. I'll leave so I won't be such a _bother_." I said it calm enough, yet my voice cracked on the last word. His expression was one of confusion and regret. I turned and ran flat out for the entrance of the subway station, cloak fluttering out behind me, my tail probably visible. I heard them shouting my name, but it wasn't really my name. I turned left, and disappeared into the darkness.

I stopped when their voices died away. I leaned against the wall of the tunnel, trying to figure it all out. I didn't know what to do. I didn't know the way out, I didn't know if it was night, and I didn't know when my arm would heal. I sat down and made myself as small as possible, using my cloak to cover my entire small frame.

I began to shake with sobs. My parents are dead! My sister is out there braving the city, and I was lost in the subway system, alone, and apparently, unwanted and unneeded. I cried softly, the tears wetting the fur on my face.

I listened as they began to drip to the floor, the only other sound as besides my sobs, as I cried myself to sleep.

* * *

**Poor Eric! Don't worry, it gets better. Please leave suggestions as to what happens next, and don't forget to review. Liliana and Eric, out!**


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